Last week, Navigant Research released a leaderboard on HVAC vendors. The top ten vendors: Trane, Carrier, Daikin Industries, Johnson Controls, Mitsubishi Electric, LG Electronics, Fujitsu, Lennox International, Rheem Manufacturing and Samsung Electronics.
The firm said that the ratings were based on 12 criteria, including vision, go-to-market strategy, partners, producing portfolios, pricing and others. Trane and Carrier represented the leader’s quadrant. The others filled the contender category. Additionally, Gree and Medea represented the Challengers’ category.
The word from the field is that those vendors will have to work harder to grow the sector. ACHR News last month provided a review of the year in HVAC sales, installation and repair. It was a mixed bag.
On the down side was the reaction of Brian Bovio, the President and CEO of the firm that bears his name. He called last winter “one of the worst” in the company’s history, which goes back 42 years:
Bovio saw a slight decrease in the number of units sold this year but a marked decrease in revenue due to clients buying more cooling- or heating-only equipment as opposed to full system replacements. Customers also chose more minimum-efficiency equipment with fewer features (e.g., variable speed, multiple stages) than in recent years, which caused the company to miss its 2016 sales forecast.
Two other firms cited in the story did better. AireServ of Las Vegas, however, hit expectations with a 12 percent increase in sales. Unusual heat helped, said the firm’s general manager. Finally, CARE Heating and Cooling of Westerville, OH beat its expectations.
